HOUSTON: HITTING: This season will mark Houston's final year in the National League. Look away, children, as the Astros launch into what is sure to be the crappiest victory lap in baseball history. Tiny 2B JOSE ALTUVE's jump from High-A to MLB starter says more about Houston's pitiful state than anything. He belongs in Triple-A. CHRIS JOHNSON won the starting 3B job as JIMMY PAREDES was optioned to Triple-A. Johnson was thought to have 25-homer power, but last year he slugged just .378. 1B CARLOS LEE is in the twilight of a very productive career. Backup 1B BRETT WALLACE seems to be in the twilight of an unproductive one. OF BRIAN BOGUSEVIC has a low ceiling. But he's one of only a few recent draft picks who will even contribute. OF J.D. MARTINEZ doesn't blame you if you haven't heard of him, but he's the team's best player who hits third in the lineup. SS JED LOWRIE was a nice little pickup for a mid-tier closer. But his platoon split is intense. C JASON CASTRO will probably play ahead of CHRIS SNYDER. OF JORDAN SCHAFER has yet to put things together; but he'll be starting in center on Opening Day. Fourth OF J.B. SHUCK is only 24, but doesn't have a whole lot of upside. STARTING PITCHING: WANDY RODRIGUEZ has been a durable, above-average starter for five years, yet every season his real-world team limits his wins. He'll be traded at some point this year. Don't shortchange BUD NORRIS. He's an underrated source of strikeouts, and has improved his command. J.A. HAPP really needs to cut down on his walk total. JORDAN LYLES couldn't legally drink until the second-to-last week of the season. He's in the big leagues way too soon. He's yet another young Astro who isn't terrible, but won't ever set the world on fire. KYLE WEILAND came from Boston with Jed Lowrie and should earn the final spot in the rotation. Texas-bred fireballer JARRED COSART, 21, is a legitimately exciting (but risky) prospect who Houston will probably rush up to the majors at some point this year. RELIEF PITCHING: BRETT MYERS flummoxed the Astros' front office with a stinker of a season. He's probably closer to that pitcher than to the one who posted a career-best 3.14 ERA in 2010 at age 29, but he'll move the bullpen this year to get the rare opportunities to close out a game when this awful team is actually leading. WILTON LOPEZ was good in 2011, but was much better the previous season, when he may have been the most underrated reliever in the National League. Houston will go with him in the ninth if they want Myers to return to the rotation. BRANDON LYON has seen better days. He bombed early, then was shut down for good with a bicep injury. He intimidates nobody now.

NY YANKEES: HITTING: Despite his decline from mediocrity into downright counter-productivity, SS DEREK JETER gets to hit atop the best lineup in baseball. Off an MVP-caliber season, OF CURTIS GRANDERSON is a true star. His average is mediocre, but his power is elite and the Yankees are letting him run when on base. After two years with a sub-.260 average, 1B MARK TEIXEIRA's talent seems to be fading. He still puts up huge power numbers playing in a bandbox. Coming off knee and thumb injuries, 3B ALEX RODRIGUEZ is a serious injury risk hitting in the middle of this lineup. 2B ROBINSON CANO will once again see as many RBI chances as anyone. He's been great in those situations the past two seasons. OFs NICK SWISHER and BRETT GARDNER offer power and SBs, respectively, though the Yankees may look to upgrade if they continue to post lackluster numbers. C RUSSELL MARTIN will get plenty of playing time now that Jesus Montero is in Seattle. Veteran slugger RAUL IBANEZ is the new DH in town, and will love hitting towards the short porch in right at Yankee Stadium. STARTING PITCHING: CC SABATHIA struggled late last year and has logged a ridiculous number of innings over the past five years. He's a top-10 starter in the majors, but is starting to pass his prime. Newcomers HIROKI KURODA and MICHAEL PINEDA will both stabilize what was a shaky rotation last year. Kuroda, 37, posted a 3.07 ERA with the Dodgers and the 23-year-old Pineda has unlimited upside, fanning 173 batters in 171 innings with Seattle last season. IVAN NOVA benefitted from nearly nine runs of support per game. He keeps the ball down often enough to thrive in the Bronx, just without many strikeouts. PHIL HUGHES' stuff has regressed greatly since his days as a top prospect. He's trying to overcome conditioning problems this offseason. MANNY BANUELOS and DELLIN BETANCES are great prospects who may get a chance to start MLB games later this season. RELIEF PITCHING: Trust MARIANO RIVERA to stay dominant until proven wrong. He was better in 2011 than he was in 2010 despite some velocity slippage. DAVID ROBERTSON has a firm hold on eighth-inning duties after an All-Star season. He's second in line for saves. RAFAEL SORIANO wasn't a total bust, as he did just fine after a rough April. He's settled into the seventh-inning role since Robertson is more trusted that he is. After Tommy John surgery, JOBA CHAMBERLAIN is aiming to be back this June. Middle reliever CORY WADE was reliable last year, and has a chance to rack up some vulture wins if he keeps going strong.

Despite their lengthy list of injured players, the New York Yankees are patiently plugging away in the early part of the season.

The young Houston Astros would do well to learn that lesson going forward as the teams wrap up their three-game set Wednesday night in the Bronx.

With a roster minus some of the customary star power that comes with a Yankees lineup - Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira and Kevin Youkilis are all on the disabled list - New York (16-10) has stitched together a solid start.

Robinson Cano has been steady with team highs of a .327 batting average, seven homers and 17 RBIs, while veteran newcomers Travis Hafner and Vernon Wells each have six homers.

Hafner keyed Tuesday night's 7-4 win with three RBI singles, the first two coming over the first three innings to give Hiroki Kuroda all the cushion he needed for his fourth straight win.

"You just see that his approach is good, and he's been great in that four-hole for us," Girardi said of Hafner, who shares the team lead with 17 RBIs. "With all the people we have out, he's done a really good job in our lineup."

Hafner is 5 for 16 with five walks against Astros scheduled starter Erik Bedard but also has struck out eight times.

Lyle Overbay, 5 for 15 with two homers and a triple in his last four games, is 3 for 13 versus Bedard but hasn't faced him since 2007.

Bedard (0-2, 7.98 ERA) may be fighting to keep his spot in Houston's rotation. The left-hander was hit hard at Fenway Park on Friday, giving up five runs and eight hits - three homers - in three-plus innings of the 7-3 loss to Boston. It was the fourth time in as many starts Bedard has lasted four or fewer innings, and his frustration was evident after that outing.

"They did their job," he told the team's official website. "They fouled a lot of pitches off and got my pitch count up and got some runs."

Bedard, who is 4-5 against the Yankees but hasn't faced them since 2008, is 0-2 with a 15.95 ERA in his last three outings. During that span, he's been tagged for five home runs among his 16 hits while yielding 13 runs in 7 1-3 innings.

The Astros (8-19), who had 17 hits in winning Monday's series opener 9-1, failed to help themselves early Tuesday when Kuroda struggled. They finished with 12 strikeouts while going 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position.

"If we could have gotten a few runs earlier with the opportunities that we had and made a couple of the crucial break-point plays, then the outcome could have been a little different," said manager Bo Porter, whose team has dropped 10 of 11 on the road.

David Phelps (1-1, 5.29) will make his first start this season for the Yankees after six relief appearances. He did pick up the win in his last outing Friday against Toronto, allowing a solo homer and one other hit in four innings after Ivan Nova left with elbow pain in a 6-4 victory. Phelps had a career-high nine strikeouts.